unprovoked aggression

Hi, I recently moved into an apartment with my bestfriend's girlfriend and she has a 9 month old cat named Misha. Misha is a beautiful and seemingly friendly cat who will come up to you and rub against your legs right away. If you open the door to the apartment hall and she gets out she will come back when called.

She seems on the surface and with a quick glance to be a very well behaved cat. But anyone around her monre the 5 minutes can see there is something definetly wrong. She will attack anyone, anytime, anywhere with no provoction at all!

There doesn't seem to be any warning signs. I've been here a few weeks and have paid close attention. At first I thought it was simply lack of attention (my roommate is not home often) but now I know that's not it.

And when she attacks (which is anytime you get within a foot of her!) she attacks violently. I had to have two stiches in my finger a few days after I moved in. I just got them out yesterday and today I have a whole new set of puncture wounds and bites. She attacked me last night while I was sleeping and split my lip and I have a scratch on my neck and bite marks. I woke up to her bitting my face.

She bit my arm today causing the bites and it took 3 of us to get her off of me. Something is seriously wrong. She's been to the vet and she is perfectly healthy. Had her hearing and sight tested. physically there is nothing wrong with her. I can't figure out why she feels threatend enough to attack like that.

My friends cat is just like that.....you could be on one side of the room and the vicious Samantha will hop from the far side and swat and bite you for no reason......though i have never needed a crew to get her off of me......but hopefully someone on here can help you out.....

I think she needs to be returned to the vet for a referral to a veterinary behaviorist. There are drugs like amitriptyline and anafranil that can treat behavior disorders, but they need a committed owner to follow a behavior modification program as well and to monitor side effects. And seizure disorders need to be ruled out, and a cursory examination will not do. Becky

Does Misha attack her owner too?

Well if she is healthy then there is a reason for her aggression that lies either in the environment, or her behavior. I would strongly recommend the book Think Like a Cat by Pam Johnson-Bennett where she devotes several chapters to aggressive cats, or Wendy Christensen's new book Outwitting Cats

Also, have a look at this article and this thread, dealing with cat aggression. Something else it may be is Feline Hyperesthesia. This article gives some great information about it.